Compromised Security

From the porch of the safe house, Special Agent Flynn o'conner spotted a helicopter approaching from the south. A distant speck in the clear, blue Colorado skies above this wide valley, the chopper came steadily closer, signaling the beginning of the end. Damn it, he didn't want to leave this place. After two years supervising the Mesa Verde safe house, Flynn had established a satisfying routine of daily chores and witness protection procedures. Being here had healed him. Pushing his Stetson back on his forehead, he nodded a greeting to Grace Lennox, one of the witnesses under his protection. She stepped up to the porch rail beside him. A handsome woman with a long gray braid, Grace Lennox was a judge under threat from an organized crime ring back East. "Beautiful afternoon," she said. "June is a good time of year." "I want to thank you, Agent o'conner, for everything you've done." "Yes, ma'am." "It's been a rough week." "That's one hell of an understatement, Grace." His well-run safe house had been thrown into turmoil when a serial killer had come after a witness. The resulting breach of security threatened to shut down this operation. The helicopter was coming to take Grace Lennox and the other remaining protected witness, a seedy little snitch by the name of Richard "Bud" Rosetti, to a more secure location. Also on board the chopper was the agent who would assess the situation and make recommendations for the future of Flynn's safe house. An evaluator. "I sincerely hope," Grace said, " that this facility won't be closed down." "So do I." "If there's anything I can do to help, please let me know." The rambling two-story farmhouse and nearby bunkhouse filled with surveillance equipment were no longer safe for protected witnesses, but Flynn hoped the site could be turned into a field headquarters, or a training facility. Somehow he had to convince the evaluator that the site was still useful. "Nonetheless," Grace continued in her crisp, no-nonsense voice, " you must be pleased by the outcome. Your serial killer is no longer a threat to anyone. That ought to give you some satisfaction." He should have felt a whole lot better than he did. This killer--a man who called himself the Judge-- had been Flynn's nemesis since before he came to the safe house, back when he'd been assigned to the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program in San Francisco. "I've been after this guy since I was in ViCAP. Now it's over. I'm glad." "And still no smile? Honestly, Flynn, you give new meaning to the wordtaciturn." As he looked down at the gray-haired woman, a grin spread across his face. She was something else--smart, feisty and brave enough to testify against a crime syndicate. "I like you, Grace. Good luck in your next location." "It's only ten more days before the trial where I'll give my testimony. Then I'll be able to resume my normal life. Thank goodness." As the chopper touched down in a sandy area beyond the split-rail fence, Bud Rosetti charged out the door, suitcase in hand. "Ready to roll." The wiry little snitch quivered with excitement. "No offense, Flynn. But I'm hoping the next safe house is in a city." "Too much clean living?, Flynn asked. "I'm dying for some decent Chinese food. And pizza. Real Italian pizza." "It's so unfair," Grace said. "You eat and eat and never gain an ounce." "Like I told you, I burn it off. I'm hot stuff, Gracie." "And what am I?" He bobbed his round bald head. "Since you never made a pass at me, I'd have to say you're an ice cube." While they launched into unlikely bickering about who was sexier, Flynn left the porch and sauntered toward the chopper. If he was lucky, the agent sent to evaluate Mesa Verde would be somebody he got along with, somebody he could bring around to his way of thinking. Luck wasn't with him. Marisa Kelso steppedMiles, Cassie is the author of 'Compromised Security ', published 2007 under ISBN 9780373692514 and ISBN 037369251X.